Does Trump's tax plan help or hinder us?

[David Parnell]

What do people think of the tax plan, and specifically, how it may impact real estate investors?

[Mike Roy]

Given that Obamacare repeal, the border wall and a host of other Trump initiatives have fallen flat thus far, I wouldn't put a ton of stock in a "plan."  

For speculation's sake though, it would seem that a tax cut aimed at W2 wage earners would have the affect of diminishing the marginal tax benefit enjoyed by rental property owners.  Since rental property owners (who do it right) pay little to no taxes to begin with, reducing W2 taxes reduces the net advantage held by rental property owners.  

Tax advantages are one of the few rationalizations left for buying at today's low cap rates.  If you deminish this advantage, there really aren't any compelling reasons left to buy a property that breaks even every month, as many markets are priced today.

The plus side for property owners though is that if you put more money in people's pocket, and supply does not increase proportionally, there is a potential that rents and thus property values can increase further still.

It's very hard to know how tax policy will affect the economy.  Lots of moving parts.